Raise the river in no limit hold'em

A common mistake made by online no-limit hold'em players in tournaments and cash games is to raise the river with a medium hand. This usually happens when a given player took the lead in the previous round and is currently playing against only one player. Often, believing that they have the strongest hand, players make a profitable, in their opinion, bet on the river. And, unfortunately, they often fall into a trap prepared by the enemy, which could have been avoided simply by checking or calling. Consider a couple of hands.

The next hand was played in $2 / $4 No Limit Hold'em. Put yourself in this player's shoes and think about how you would act in each situation. In the hands of our player - A Q.

You are on the button and there are two more players in front of you. You just call the minimum bet of $4. And the big blind checks to see the flop. Four of you keep playing and see the flop - 5 9 A.

You get top pair with a strong kicker, there are no unfinished combinations on the table. All the players check to you, and you make a nice $ 16 bet equal to the pot. The big blind calls and remains in the game, and everyone else folds. The two of you see the turn that brings - 2.

Thinking you have the strongest hand, you make a profitable $ 40 bet, adding to the $ 48 pot. Oddly enough, the big blind supports your bet. The river opens - 5.

This time, the big blind bets $ 16 against the $ 128 pot. You think the big blind has a stupid unfinished flush or an unfortunate ace, so you make another profitable bet and raise to 50$. The big blind just calls your raise and opens - 5 8.

What did this player do wrong? And although this can be devoted to a separate article, we can say that with suited queen and ace in the button position, he should have raised the bet 3 or 4 times. This would get rid of the junk (ie hands like 5-8) and give you an advantage on the flop. Calling would only make sense if he wanted to see the flop and didn't believe that his raise would get rid of anyone. Continuing with a hand like this is tricky if you raise before the flop and you have neither a pair nor an incomplete hand on the flop.

And on the flop and turn, I liked his actions. In order to discourage players with weak unfinished hands and increase the pot on the flop, this player makes a bet almost equal to the size of the pot. The turn brings the second heart, which means that his opponent will check again. He makes a strong $ 40 bet. But when his opponent backed the bet with a check-call, the alarm should have sounded in his head. And on the river, his passive opponent suddenly bets. Our player has top pair, but he already has a pair on the board. His opponent is in the big blind and he can have anything: AK, A-2, or even 5. And our hero has only one pair and the result of his raise will only call the one whose combination is stronger. In a situation like this (even with AK) I would only recommend calling on the river and opening hands. But a lot of players play wacky ace or worse hands ... especially online.

Consider another example of $1 / $2 no-limit cash game. The big blind checks with the intention of seeing the flop with two other limpers and is holding 2 3.

The flop comes to him with absolute candy when the next cards are revealed - A 4 5.

In hopes of trapping one of the limpers who might have an ace, he simply checks. The two remaining players do the same. The turn opens - 6.

Fearing a possible flush or straight draw, the big blind bets $ 10 with a pot of $6. Only one player calls and the two of them see the river - 8.

The big blind puts in another $ 15, and his opponent raises to $45. The big blind calls quickly and sees his counter
ivnik opens victorious - J 7.

Again, the first mistake was made on the flop when our player was slow-playing with a candy in his hand, and the most serious mistake was calling on the river. He had the stupidest end of a straight and was losing to anyone with a 7. If you ever find yourself in a situation like this where the candy hasn't worked out, just check and / or get rid of your hand after a big raise.

Many players hold their hands tightly and make the mistake of betting and / or raising on the river with no more than a medium-strength hand, like top pair. In addition, suited connectors that make flushes or straights must be played strongly because another suited card or connector could destroy the hand. If you have absolute candy or anything close to it, feel free to continue making profitable bets and raises. However, if the table looks intimidating and the opponent is playing aggressively, try to reduce it to a simple showdown. This is especially true for those situations when, judging by the way the opponent plays, it is obvious that he is hunting for the card that completes the combination, and when such a card comes out on the river. In such a case, there is no reason to bet on the river if your opponent checks before you.